Honduras (AP):

Diplomats from through-out the hemisphere were converging on Honduras yesterday, in an attempt to resolve a standoff that has left the impoverished Central American country with two presidents, a capital scarred by protests and a bitterly divided population.

Delegates from more than 10 Latin and North American countries will be on hand to mediate talks between representatives of President Manuel Zelaya, who was ousted by the military three months ago, and the government of interim President Roberto Micheletti, who has the support of Honduras' Congress and Supreme Court, but has faced intense international pressure to allow his predecessor's return.

Micheletti set an optimistic tone in a national address late Tuesday, saying the talks would address with a "new spirit" the main issues of dispute over the San Jose Accord, a plan brokered by Nobel Prize-winning former Costa Rican President Oscar Arias.

"To consolidate political stability and normalise our country's relations with the international community, I believe the time is right to intensify the national dialogue," he said in the brief speech.

Crucial issues

Micheletti did not go into specifics, but said two crucial issues would be discussion of the "powers of the state" and amnesty, apparent references to the key areas of dispute over the San Jose Accord, which would allow Zelaya to return without being prosecuted for his alleged crimes.